


The Place to Meet

by Sherwhotreksings



Series: Holding You Closer [5]
Category: Parks and Recreation
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-20
Updated: 2015-07-20
Packaged: 2018-04-10 08:39:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,844
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4385039
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sherwhotreksings/pseuds/Sherwhotreksings
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Chris's rule really stinks. Takes place during Soulmates (3x10).</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Place to Meet

Ben isn’t normally the jealous type, but he wants to slap Joe when he sees him leering at Leslie. He has half a mind to go over to him and tell him to knock it off, but Leslie beats him to it. Of course she would, she can handle herself. He stays nearby to keep an eye on them, just in case.

"Hi Joe,” she says, preparing herself for what’s to come.

"What's up, Knope? Looking good these days." He eyes her.

She gives him a 'what-did-you-just-say' look.

"What do you say? Van out back, lets roll!" He blocks her from walking past him.

Leslie looks positively disgusted and Ben can't help but mentally scream at Joe to leave her alone because she's his, but she isn't really, Leslie Knope doesn’t belong to anyone.

"Where's this coming from?" Leslie questions him, raising an eyebrow.

"I dunno, you're putting out some vibe today. It's just driving me crazy."

Ben has to agree with him, but he feels like that every day. Thanks to Chris’s stupid rule, however, he isn’t allowed to tell her that she’s the night sky and whenever he looks at her it feels like the stars are falling around him.

"Listen, if you're looking for a good time why don’t you come on down to the toilet party?" He pulls some weird move, running a hand through his hair.

Leslie just stares at him, eyebrows cocked in a way that suggests he should back off, and fast, or maybe she’s just trying to burn a hole in his head..

Ben takes a few steps closer, ready to intervene if she punches him.

"It's what we call the sewage department." Joe smiles grossly at her.

"Great, ok." She sounds very sarcastic as she walks away.

Joe stares creepily at her butt. "Liking the view. Still got it Joe."

“No you don’t!” Leslie calls back.

That's it. Ben has to take a few deep breaths to keep from punching him.

"Listen, you can't talk to Leslie like that." He approaches Joe.

"I can and I just did."

"We'll it's not respectful." He clenches and unclenches his fists.

"I don't care if it's respectful or not. Knope will be in my pants by the end of the day."

"Gross and I don't want to hear you talk to anyone, especially Leslie, like that again." He walks away, confidence fading, to go find Leslie.

He catches her as she is walking to her office. "Hey Leslie."

"Oh hey, Ben! What's up?" She smiles at him and his stomach flip flops.

"You know I can't believe I'm saying this, but I actually checked out that snowglobe museum that you recommended and it was pretty awesome!"

Her smug grin makes him want to kiss it right off her face.

_Everything makes him want to kiss her. Chris's rule, Wyatt._

"I mean I did get in trouble for shaking one." He rubs the back of his neck sheepishly.

"Yeah I'm not allowed there anymore."

He can just picture an over zealous Leslie laughing, while running around shaking every snowglobe she can reach. Maybe they should sneak in and shake them all together sometime.

"So I have some idea's for the health initiative."

"Oh ok-" Back to work talk; it’s probably a good thing.. "-how about I swing by later and we can go over everything?"

"Or we could go out...after work?" she offers.

His face freezes.

_Yes! Yes lets do it!_

Did she just say what he thinks she did? 

"You know? Go to JJ's or something? Grab a bite?" she says hopefully.

He isn't responding and he can see mild panic set in on her face.

_Don't say yes, Chris's rule._

"Umm.. I don't- I don't think I can. But.. why don't we talk about it later? Innnn... this building......... ok?"

Her face falls and he regrets that he has to say no.

"But you're great and you have great ideas aaaand.... uuuuuuhhhhhmmmmm... uhhhhhhh... bye!" He dashes into his office.

In the hall he can see Leslie pace a step or two in each direction, running a hand through her hair before walking as fast as she can to her office. He puts his elbows down and rests his head in his hands. He's so stupid for hurting her, why didn't he just tell her about Chris's rule; it would make things so much simpler. When someone taps him on his shoulder and tells him to get out, he realizes he isn't in his office.

He takes the most roundabout way to get to his own office in order to avoid going past Leslie’s. He embarrassed himself, and probably her too, so badly that he’ll be happy if he can lay low for the time being.

 

~o~

 

He finds out Leslie made an online dating profile through April and Andy who were laughing at her answers for the questions. His jealousy flares out of control over such a little thing. Who says she’s even going to date anyone from the site.

_Wyatt, she's gone. You can't date her. Chris's rule._

He makes a dating profile for fun. If he has to get over her, he might as well do it the same way she is... on the same site. After completing the questions, the first match pops up with a 90% match. He clicks on the 'show match' button. Leslie Knope.

_Crap! Chris's rule, Chris's rule, Chris's rule!_

He panics, deletes his profile, clears his browser history, and reboots his computer without so much as glancing at her answers. Then spends the rest of the morning acting like at any second, he’ll get busted for a crime.

 

~o~

 

In the meeting about department health, Tom volunteers himself and Leslie for leading because of a "deep spiritual connection." He thinks that's weird of course, but it's Tom; the last time they had a meeting, he only talked quoting song lyrics.

Leslie reassures him that everything is okay with a head nod and a hand to Tom, but he speaks up. “Everything is okay, Leslie and I just had something magical happen between us today.”

She angrily pulls Tom out of the conference room, shoving him into the hallway.

Ben tries to keep focused on his notes, but he keeps looking up and out the window.

Donna theorizes what’s going on between them. “I think they did it.”

That definitely gets his attention. “You think they’re… you know?” he sputters.

“Definitely. Did you see that look she gave him. There’s obviously something going on between them.” Donna taps the point of her pencil on the table for emphasis.

He glances up at them again, just in time to see Leslie kissing Tom. His mouth drops open and he shuts it quickly, with a snap.

“What did you see?” Donna asks enthusiastically.

He looks down and shuffles through his papers to avoid answering her question. His reaction makes everyone turn and look out the window, but unfortunately Ben is the only one who is at the right angle to see them. Donna wheels over to the right some, and catches Leslie looking scandalized while Chris stands down the hallway.

Tom returns without Leslie, and Ben can barely contain his questions until the end of the meeting.

“Hey, Tom. What was all that stuff with you and Leslie?” He shifts his weight back and forth.

“Girl likes Indian food. What can I say?” Tom wiggles his eyebrow.

Ben tips his head forward, staring.

“Fine.” Tom sighs. “We got matched up on an online dating site.” He grins. “I was messing with her, she got pissed, so she took me out into the hallway and kissed me.”

“Really.” He feels disappointed and relieved.

“As much as it pains me to admit this,” Tom continues, “it was not disgusting.” He smirks, elbowing Ben a few times in the arm.

“Ok well, I don’t need the details.” He really doesn’t want to hear how the person he likes was kissing someone else.

Tom tries to describe it all, so Ben sidesteps him and runs into the hallway, but when he follows him, Ben hides in the bathroom until Tom is gone, then he makes his way down to the cook off.

“Hey what’s up?” Leslie approaches him.

He’s been dreading this moment, but he’s also glad he didn’t have to be the first one to talk. He would’ve if she hadn’t because he’s not fooling himself, he couldn’t go the rest of the week, or day even, without talking to her.

“Uh, I think I’m allergic to chutney, also...what’s chutney?” He only says it to make her laugh.

"No clue,” she says after giggling. “Hey, so I never got a chance to tell you the rest of my ideas. Do you maybe wanna go somewhere and... talk about them?

"Yeah, yeah I'd love to."

_Keep it professional, Wyatt. Chris's rule._

"Let me get some actual food-" He lifts the turkey burger plate. "-and then.. umm.. you know that wildflower mural up on the second floor?"

"Mhm." She nods and a slow smile spreads across her face.

"Yeah? Do you wanna meet there?" He squints his eyes and tips his head, hoping he suggested a good place and going by her reaction, he did.

"Yeah, sounds good." She is beaming at him, her eyes jumping from his face, to the floor and back.

He walks upstairs with his beef burger, his hands shaking, and sees her sitting on the small bench in front of the mural. It's his favorite place in the building and it’s even better with her sitting there. He stands around the corner for a second or two, just watching because she hasn’t seen him yet.

Her hands are folded neatly in her lap and she is intently studying something on the floor. She glances up at his side of the hall, grinning when she sees him.

“Hey, so I grabbed an extra burger for you, just in case you wanted it.” He hands her his second plate of food and sits down to the right of her.

“Oh great, I’m starving!” She happily takes a huge bite.

“Didn’t you have two already?” He looks incredulous.

“Yes, but Ron makes the best burgers,” she says through a mouth full of food.

From there she proposes several more ideas, none of which he remembers, other than “Superhero day. You dress up like your favorite superhero and complete fitness missions to defeat the villains.” Personally that was his favorite. He would love to dress up and fight villains, especially if he could team up with Leslie.

“I should probably go get my stuff from my office. I have a few things I need to finish up and I might as well take it home.” She stands up.

Ben stands up as well. “You want some company on the way?”

“No, I also have to go to the Whiz Palace, so yeah, uhh. Bye Ben!” She waves and half dashes away.  
  
His heart sinks as he watches her go, but he’ll see her tomorrow.


End file.
